Mark, you're doing great!!! Your finger picking skills are far above mine. Hey, if you sit cross legged and that works for you that's awesome. I just know for me if I sit cross legged for any length of time I get a real bad back ache. That's just me and my old body. I'm enjoying your videos. Keep them coming

Mark, I love your videos! It's strange how cats and dulcimers go so well together... There must be a way to get them to join in...

You're progressing nicely...yeah, that's what it is progression....

Week 5? 6? 7? who cares. Keep playing!

Your enthusiasm and spirit towards the instrument are truly inspiring.

Mark here is a pdf file of the tab I put together for Beech Spring . The tab corresponds to the version I do in the demo that includes the hammer-ons and pull-offs. I put this together because I thought it was a good beginner tune that enabled people to work on those techniques. I hope you find it helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. And if you just don't like the tune or the arrangement, don't be afraid to speak up, too.

Good going, Mark! If you prefer fingerpicking, just do it. It's a great way to play the dulcimer. I think it's in Jean Schilling's book "Fiddle Tunes for the Mt Dulcimer" (long out of print) where she quotes an old dulcimer player from southern Virginia who told her something to the effect if you don't fingerpick it, you don't really play it. That being said, I do both, but I love fingerpicking more. I'll be doing a workshop later this month where I'll be using a pick, but that's just because all the players around here use one.

Perhaps "Soldier's Joy" will be one you can add to your repertoire?

Oh yeah, glad to see you've read "In Search of the Wild Dulcimer;" it's a great book.

I'm having so much fun! Thank you, Lisa. At least Andr and Allowiscious don't fight when I play anymore. Those were tough times, indeed!

I would love the tablature for the piece, Dusty. I really like the way you jazzed up the tune. And I can use the exercise!

I'm starting to see that any tune can be energized, but I'm too new to get precisely how yet. One thing that is really drawing me to the dulcimer is that I can do what I want. Sure there are rules and there will be those "purists," but to quote some rule breakers, "I'm free to do what I want any old time."

The arpeggio exercise and other finger exercises I'm doing are really opening up my playing--as little as I know and can do now. In ten years I'll be knockin' em' dead--my cats, I mean, because I don't really play for anyone else...just me and the boys.

I'm switching between finger picking and a flat picking, and I have to say that I just enjoy finger picking more. Maybe I need to work more with a pick. I have no problems with a pick and strumming, but it just feels not good when I do single strings with a flat pick. Suggestions?

Thank y'all for the support!

Mark, here's the video demo I did of Beech Spring . I go through the song once "straight" and it sounds pretty boring. Then I add some hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides, and it sounds much better. That better version of the song begins around 2:20 in case you want to skip right to it. It's a simple arrangement with only one chord involved. Let me know if you want the tablature.

Mark, you're progressing very well. And I encourage you to keep working on that arpeggio exercise (I do it too, by the way, but with a flatpick) and those exercises on hammer-ons and pull-offs. As you keep playing it will be more and more obvious how to incorporate those left-hand techniques into the playing that you're doing. I heard a nice pull-off in the very first line of Home on the Range, in fact!

For my own dulcimer group I arranged a pretty simple version of the Quaker tune Beech Spring specifically for working on hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides. I put together two sets of tab, one straight and one with those legato techniques and I think I did a demo video. If you're interested let me know and I'll post links for you.

I love how Andre sits there in the beginning....but is discreetly absent later on. lolol...cats.

Your improvements are very obvious from week to week. PLUS, you are having fun! Great going!

This is the 5th installment on my way to being reasonably competent on the mt. dulcimer. I'm playing every day and having a blast. Plus, my wife plays the guitar and banjo, and me learning the dulcimer has cut a new facet to the gem that is our relationship.